Thoughts in Oneshots
by ghost-of-a-scarecrow
Summary: What did the Once-ler do after the Lorax left? What were Ted's thoughts when he met the Once-ler? Basically a series of one-shots answering my random thoughts after watching the movie. Share and Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: These are going to be a series of one-shots based on various thoughts I've had while watching the movie The Lorax. Please read, enjoy, and review!**

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><p>1: So what did the Once-ler do after the Lorax was lifted away?<p>

...

The Lorax had warned me, I didn't listen. Look where it got me. Two weeks after the annoying orange fuzz ball left, I was still lurking quietly in my former office. Slouched back in my chair, feet up on the desk and the model of 'Thneedville' lying broken on the floor, I contemplated my situation for the thousandth time. For the last two weeks I had sat in my chair. For the last two weeks I had been staring a hole straight through my desk and then straight through the floor. I was going a little stir-crazy.

It's my fault.

It's my fault.

It's my fault.

Shut up.

It's my fault.

Sigh...

I hadn't come to a solution yet, but thinking about it wasn't about to get boring. The constant lump in my throat and the knot of guilt in the pit of my stomach would make sure of that – what I'd done was impossible to forget, and I'd certainly never forgive myself. But as I sat slumped in my chair, I made a resolution. It wouldn't do me – nor anyone else – any good if I did nothing. With a new purpose in mind I scrambled up from my chair and hopped over the desk, almost tripping myself when I just barely cleared it. Finally, I had something to do! This terrible boredom had been far worse than the half-insane ranting I had succumbed to on my initial trip to the Truffula forest... Unfortunately, this new boredom couldn't be quenched; it was mingled with a mind-numbing sense of dread and unbearable loneliness.

As I reached the bottom of the stairs, I looked back to the building from which I had come, feeling a sudden surge of hate rise up from my lungs, and I screamed at the nothing that cared to hear. The factory that I had so carefully and lovingly designed was now my worst regret. After a moment of deep breathing – followed by several coughing fits – I continued on towards the opposite building, and quickly snatched all that I'd need, running outside and away towards the schloppy, gloopy, river. And I walked. I walked for the entire day, following the river through the empty air, not bothering to look up from the ground. There was nothing to see, only dead Truffula stumps all around; I already knew what the sky looked like, smoky and grey and thick with smog. But as I kept my gaze lowered, I was searching. Hour after hour, I searched to no end until nightfall. Even then, I refused to stop. I wandered all night, straying from the sluggish river to search among the hills and valleys. There was no moon, and my only source of light was an old electric illuminator that my family used to use on the farm. That seemed like such a long time ago...

By the next day, I could barely keep my eyes open, but I forced myself to continue my search. That is, until I finally collapsed from exhaustion. Greyish dust curled up around me when I fell, settling down over my clothes and stopping up my lungs. Yet another coughing fit followed. Right there on the ground, I passed out.

When I woke, I took a guess and assumed it was midday – hard to tell when the sky's so grey. I got up from the ground and went on my way. I looked far and wide across the countless fields of Truffula stumps, until finally I found it. It was sitting peacefully at the foot of a particularly massacred-looking Truffula stump, half-buried in dried-up dirt and just a little bit scuffed. I picked it up gingerly in my long green gruvvulous gloves, wiping it off and looking it over, tears welling up in my eyes. I had it in my hand, the one thing that everyone truly needs.

A small but significant Truffula seed.

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><p><strong>AN: Hope you like it so far! Stay tuned for the next one-shot!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I love writing stories between Ted and the Once-ler. I know not all the quotes are exactly right, but when the movie comes out on DVD I'll come back to this story and perfect their entire conversation. Anyhow, this is from Ted's point of view, contemplating his initial thoughts on the slightly crazy old man. Read, enjoy, and review!**

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><p>2: What was Ted thinking when he first met the Once-ler?<p>

...

The fog was like nothing I'd ever seen. I couldn't remember having actually seen fog before, but I must have. If I hadn't, then how did I know what it was called? All right, mind back to the present. I was surprised I hadn't stumbled yet, the ground being uneven and my line of sight not much better. A calm yellow-ish glow met my eyes, and the fog seemed to thin out into non-existence. What a strange substance: fog. Why did my mind keep wandering? It couldn't have anything to do with fact that I was scared half out of my wits, could it?

I got my first good look at the strange grey structure in front of me when I was nearly upon it. The glow of light was emanating from a boarded-up window on the top floor. Why was it boarded? I guess I'd find out, if he really was this Once-ler guy Grammy was talking about. I cautiously walked up to the stone steps of the porch. Placing my hand on the rail, I quickly pulled it back when I found it to be rough and covered in some sort of grimy, reddish, flaking bits. What was it? I didn't dwell on the question as I wiped my hands and continued up a couple of steps.

BANG!

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the noise, whirling around to face whatever it was that had made it. With my heart pounding in my chest, I saw that it was only the railing. I took half a moment to calm myself, turning to examine the door that stood before me. The sign hanging lopsided from it read 'The Once-ler'. Grammy was right. I hesitated, wondering whether this really was a good idea after all. I thought of how badly Audrey wanted a tree, how pretty she looked, and her innocent comment on the subject of marriage. It wasn't that I was really expecting her to hold true to that, but why not, right?

I mustered up my courage, and pushed the doorbell. Not a sound came from it. At least, not the sort of sound I was expecting. A grinding noise, like gears, made itself known from the other side of the purple-grey wood, then _the entire door flipped over._ I backed away, standing in the middle of the porch as the mechanisms worked their magic and a pair of old scissors cut the string holding a large wooden mallet in place. _What the...?_ I cried out as I flipped high into the air. Going up wasn't so bad; it was coming back down head-first that was terrifying. I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye, but didn't pay much heed due to the ground that was becoming rapidly closer. I covered my face with my arms as I prepared to hit it. It never happened. Instead, I felt something grab me by my leg and hoist me back up into the air. What was this? Some sort of sick game this Once-ler guy had made up to terrify anyone who cared to come around? Whatever had caught me brought me swinging up to the boarded window I had seen earlier.

"Who are you and what are you doing here!" An aged voice demanded as its owner came forcefully up to the window and glared at me intently through the cracks in the boards. I would have answered, had my heart not been stuck in my throat and beating rapidly against the sheer panic and surprise by which I had been greeted by this creepy old man. My first impression of him wasn't improved any when he tried to grab me through the boards of the window. He then proceeded to ask if I'd even seen the signs at his gate. I was starting to think that he really didn't want any visitors. By the time I found myself being lowered to the ground the conversation had gotten to the point that I was a little bit frustrated. Not by much, but just a little bit.

"And don't let the boot hit you on the way out," The Once-ler said.

"What?"

I was suddenly hit the backside with a boot. Ouch. Okay that was it, he warned me about the boot, but that really didn't make me feel any better. I shoved my hand into my pocket and pulled out the fifteen cents, the nail, and the great, great, great grandfather snail.

"People say that if someone brings you this stuff, that you'll tell them about trees." As I finished the sentence, the old man's mood seemed to calm. I couldn't suppress the small feeling of relief as I held out the objects in my hand.

"Trees?" he asked. There was an undertone in his voice that I couldn't quite place, but it almost sounded sad. I could see that his mind was somewhere else entirely; he wasn't really listening. I somehow managed to gain his attention.

"Oh, sorry, it's just... well, I didn't think anyone still cared about trees," he said.

"Well, that's me! They guy who still cares!" I said, thinking I was finally getting somewhere. But by the look in his eyes – for that was really all I could see of him apart from his gloves – I thought he was just going to ask me to leave. I was actually a bit worried that I'd made him unhappy with me.

"You want to know about the trees? What happened to them? Why they're all gone..." The tone in his voice told me that I had, in fact, made him sad, if only just a little bit; but the last part of the sentence was far too quietly spoken for me to hear from the ground.

"What?" I called up. A very odd contraption that looked a little like a bugle on a long metal hose extended from the window and situated itself in front of me. I didn't know what it was, or what it would do, but I certainly wasn't expecting the face full of dust that I received and the confession "It was because of me!" from the old Once-ler.

"It all started a long time ago..." he began, but I interrupted with a small jump in the pit of my stomach.

"Could we, y'know, not start so long ago?"

"Do you want a tree?"

"Yes," I sighed.

"Then it all started a long, _long_, time ago..." And as he began the story, I found myself only slightly engrossed, hardly wondering where it was going. It sounded like one of those stories one would expect from grandparents in Thneedville of their lives as children. Those usually ended with a scolding on how easy it was for us kids today, and how the schoolwork wasn't nearly as challenging anymore... and other such 'lessons'. When he'd gotten part-way through, I interrupted again.

"That's great, but is there a musical number where you tell me how to get a tree?"

"Oh yes, it's right after the one about the kid who kept interrupting the story and was never heard from again." He answered with an almost insane little giggle. I sighed and let him continue, resigning myself to a boring night. But by the time he got to the part about the mystical and 'slightly annoying' creature, the Lorax, my interest was piqued. I started to really notice the finer points of the story, how he described the forest and the creatures that lived in it with such loving detail; how he seemed to leave absolutely nothing out. I could actually picture it all in my head. This wasn't just another grandparents' backstory. And just when it was getting really interesting...

"And you won't believe what happened that night," he said with a flourish.

"Wait, what?" I said in disbelief.

"You want to hear the rest of the story, come back tomorrow."

"But... wait, no, no!" The claw had come down to snatch me up again and I was dropped into the pail at his eye level.

"Don't make me come back here..." I complained. I tried in vain to convince him to tell me the rest, but his argument was sound, and it was clear I wasn't going to get anything more out of him. He reached out a long, green-gloved hand and pushed me – albeit a lot more gently than before – back down to the ground. He turned off his light and I heard no more from him. I shook off my dejectedness and backed towards my one-wheeler.

"All right, fine, see? I'm leaving! I'll see you tomorrow!" I called as I put on my helmet and climbed onto my one-wheeler. As I drove away, I thought over what I had heard so far, and tried to predict what would happen next, where it was going. Man, that guy really knew how to leave a good cliffhanger. I would definitely be back tomorrow, though I was beginning to question whether it was still to get a tree for Audrey, or just to hear the Once-ler's story. Audrey, I told myself, definitely for Audrey. And yet...


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I once again realize that the quotes may not be completely correct, but I did the best I could. Please read, enjoy, and review!**

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><p>3: Ted's second visit to the Once-ler.<p>

…

The second time I went to visit, his Lurkim was a lot harder to get to. Well, harder in the sense of getting out of town, but at least quite a bit easier navigating the wastelands I found outside. Especially since I now knew where the random axe-machines were. I can't explain just how freaked out I was when I nearly ran into them last time. But now I knew, and now I avoided. I'd have to mention them to the Once-ler. I don't think he knows they're there.

I walked up to the purplish door for the second time and rang the bell. I heard the grinding of gears from behind the door. I forgot about that. Jumping out of the way just as the mallet was let loose, I landed a little harder on the ground than I would've liked. I got up, rubbing my arm. How did the string holding the mallet become intact again anyway? Wasn't it cut yesterday by the scissors? Maybe the old guy replaced it.

"Y'know, you really ought to get a new doorbell!" I called up to the backlit, boarded window. Did he stay up there all day?

"Aw, you missed me," he said as he appeared, tilting his head to the side. I was confused for a moment.

"What?" I asked.

"Well, you came back, you obviously missed me... at least a little." The last bit of the sentence was spoken almost hopefully, and I found myself wondering how long he'd been living here, and if he'd been alone the whole time.

"What? No," I denied. It wasn't very convincing. "I just wanted to know what happened to the trees."

"Why are you so interested in trees, anyway? Why aren't you like other kids... break dancing, and wearing bell bottoms, and playing the Donkey Kongs?" I was a little surprised by the question, but I actually found it a bit amusing. The Once-ler was obviously out of tune with the world's progress from such things as those he had mentioned.

"Yeah… right, right. Yeah I dunno, uh, I just, I just y'know, thought it'd be kinda cool to have one, y'know."

"Hmm? It's a girl, isn't it?" Something inside me jumped. How did he know?

"Pff what? No!" The Once-ler leaned back against the window frame, resting an arm on one of the boards.

"Really?" He said. "'Cause when a guy does something stupid once, well, that's 'cause he's a guy. But if he does the same stupid thing twice, that's usually to impress some... girl." Oh boy, I was busted.

"Hey, she is not 'some girl'! She's a woman, in high school... and she loves trees. And I'm going to get her one." Wow, what a defence that was. Yeah, right. I was still feeling a little bit defiant at the mention of calling Audrey 'some girl', though.

"Aw, so nice to see someone so undeterred by things like... reality," Once-ler said.

"Thank you."

"Now, where did we leave off?" he said, train of thought going back to the story. I was a little surprised; I was actually starting to have an inkling of doubt as to whether he was going to continue the story now that he knew I was only doing this to impress a girl... woman. But that inkling left when he began, once again, to narrate his past adventures. The story got more interesting as he went along; his trip down the river, his near brush with death, his attempts at selling his thneed. I have to admit, I actually started laughing when he told me about getting tomatoes thrown in his face. He didn't seem to mind, though.

When he finished the day's portion of the story, I sat outside and just talked with him for a while, telling him about what it was like living in Thneedville, about my family, and even about my run-in with O'Hare. He seemed especially pleased that I had come to visit despite the warning, and it made me feel good to see him that happy. There was something in his demeanour that told me he needed it, and thinking back to our initial meeting, his mood really had changed a lot. I couldn't help wondering what he looked like though, and I didn't understand why he hid himself behind those boards on the window, but I decided to be patient and wait for the end of the story. Maybe he'd tell me.

When he finally admitted that he was tired, I got up to leave, when I remembered something that I had meant to tell him.

"You know the road that leads from Thneedville to here?" I asked before he could shut off the light.

"Yes," he said, head tilted to the side.

"Well, I just thought I should tell you, y'know, that there's these giant axe-things... really big machines..."

"I know," he said. It was gentle and quiet, and I had barely heard, but the sound of it made me get the feeling that I shouldn't press the matter.

"Oh, okay, well... I just thought I'd let you know..." I was a bit scared that I'd said something wrong, but thinking back on it, it kind of made sense that he already knew about it. He probably went for walks outside; he wouldn't just sit up in his Lurkim all day and never come out, would he?

"Um, goodnight!" I called.

"Goodnight, Ted," he said. I thought that was all he was going to say, then, "I'll tell you about the Super-Axe-Hackers tomorrow." Super-Axe-Hackers? As I puzzled over this, the light in the Once-ler's window switched off, and I sincerely hoped that I hadn't unintentionally thrown him off of his good mood. He was a little eccentric, his voice a bit sharpish, and I didn't know what he looked like; but he really was a nice guy.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: All right, here's the next one. I just got to thinking: what was the Once-ler up to before Ted came around? I consider the old Once-ler a bit eccentric… so why not have him do something normal and see how that works out for him? The other thought that I had while watching the movie was: when did the great, great, great grandfather snail manage to find its way into the Once-ler's Lurkim? Anyhow, read, enjoy, and don't forget to tell me what you think! (Thanks to all those who have, by the way)**

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><p>It had been a long time. A <em>very<em> long time; living alone in my Lurkim with none but the crows to tell of the passing hours... years. The pain of being young had dimmed with age, although I was reminded of it every day when I looked out of my poorly-boarded window. I couldn't remember why I had covered my window; it had been an impulse long gone, but I couldn't bring myself to tear it down. It separated me from the rest of the world – as it should.

The inside of my Lurkim's uppermost dwelling was plain and slightly unkempt. One would think I'd have a lot of time to clean it up. Well, I did, but I still didn't bother. I sat down on my bed and opened a book, hoping to read a few chapters before the hidden sun went down. Perhaps it wasn't as late as I thought; or maybe it was much later in the day, but I hardly noticed when what little natural light there had been was replaced by the warm glow of my lamp.

Chapter six – I decided – was a completely pointless chapter. The author just rambled on about the scenery, not that I couldn't imagine such a place. It was hard not to when a whole chapter was dedicated to the mere description of it. I eventually ended up skipping it when I was half-way through, moving on to chapter seven. I couldn't have missed much, right? Two lines into the new chapter, I realized that I had no idea why the protagonists were suddenly fighting for their lives in zero gravity, without oxygen or space gear, and with a strange dog-like person literally barking orders at them. So I resigned myself to finishing chapter six. I soon decided that this author was a lunatic; for by the time I finished the chapter, there had been absolutely no lead-in as to why the protagonists were where they were. I set the book aside, promising myself I would burn it later.

I took a glance outside, realizing with a start that it had gotten fairly dark. Where had the time gone? Not that it mattered too much, but it really would be nice to know that I still had the ability to keep track of it.

A rumbling noise met my ears. At first I thought it might be thunder. Though no rain ever fell, the odd storm would pass overhead and wake me from a good dream or two. But this rumbling was different; it was constant. More like a motor. It was getting closer. A slight sense of both dread and curiosity engulfed my senses, and I peeked out the window. A small form was moving quickly down the road towards my Lurkim. Oh, great. Visitors. Hadn't had one of those in a long while. The last one was a young girl that wanted to hear about trees. She was incensed when I told her my story, and appalled when I revealed my part in it. She expressed her desire to see a tree, to watch one grow in her back yard. Had she not been so young at the age of four, I might have considered the option of giving her the seed. But for some strange reason, I just couldn't bring it upon myself to trust her. This was all before I had booby-trapped my door, of course.

Now a new visitor would doubtless want one of two things: to hear about what happened to the trees, or to fulfill a childish dare to ring my doorbell. I almost felt bad for the kids who did the latter... but not really. It was quite funny when they ran away, to be completely honest. However, up until that point it was all just irritatingly annoying. Didn't they have any respect for the creepy old hermits that lived in wastelands; cut off from all forms of society and going a little bit crazy as a result?

The rumbling of the motor stopped, and I took another glance out of my window at the advancing figure. Looked like a young boy of not more than thirteen. He crept up to my Lurkim, evidently more than a little nervous, jumping in fright when he knocked down my railing. The little brat. He disappeared from my line of sight as he stepped onto the porch. I could almost imagine him hesitating before ringing the bell. Perhaps he'd think better of it; I really didn't feel like dealing with him right now. I heard him yell out as he flew through the air, intending to give him a piece of my mind when the claw brought him up.

"Who are you and what are you doing here!" I asked as I leapt up to the window boards to get a better look at this kid. He was swinging back and forth in the grip of the claw. He freaked out a bit when I tried to grab him through the boards, but still managed to tell me his name. "Ted Wiggins" it was.

"Are you the Once-ler?" He asked. I wasn't phased. All the kids that came here knew my name from the (completely made-up, mind you) horror stories that their friends would tell them about me.

"Didn't you read the signs? No one is supposed to come here!" He started to protest when I pulled a lever that dropped him to the ground. He stood and swiped the dirt from his jeans, obviously not too happy with me.

"And don't let the boot hit you on the way out," I said, still smiling but with an air of finality as the boot hit him in the rear end. I wanted this kid to know that the conversation was _over,_ and that he should probably leave. Right now. To my surprise, he came right back. Did he want to go through all of this again? I almost sighed.

"People say that if someone brings you this stuff, that you'll tell them about trees." He called up to me, pulling a few objects from his pocket and holding them out.

"Trees?" I said before I could stop myself. He was probably still talking, but I was instantly lost in memory. I had been avoiding that single word for the longest time. I knew the subject would be brought up eventually; I mean, I was just thinking about the little red-haired girl that asked me of them. But it did nothing to prevent the imminent reverie that consumed my thoughts when it was vocally mentioned.

"Um, hello?"

"Oh, sorry, it's just... well I didn't think anyone still cared about trees," I answered in all honestly.

"Well that's me! The guy who still cares!" I didn't really believe him, but there was something about the kid's determination that told me I might as well go ahead and tell him the story.

"You want to know about trees, why they're all gone...?" I started. Maybe this kid could handle the truth, maybe not. But as I told the story, there was something in his manner that revealed his true reason for coming was not initially to find out what happened to the trees; and when he interrupted me, I got a bit annoyed, I'll admit. When the Lorax came into the picture, however, his eyes got wide and I saw him begin to take interest. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. I needed to know that he really did care, so I broke off the story and told him to come back tomorrow. He protested, but eventually yelled up to me that he'd be back the next day. I watched him leave from the window.

"Maybe. Just maybe."

Turning back towards my bed, I decided against going to sleep for the moment. I wandered down the steps... they seemed to have gotten steeper over the years. Walking over to the door, I replaced the string holding the mallet to the spot, and realigned the mechanisms that led from the doorbell to the scissors. Making sure it was tight enough that it wouldn't go off, I opened my dark purple door and stepped outside onto the filthy porch. Walking around my Lurkim, I kept my eyes to the ground, searching. Ah, there it was. I reached down and gently scooped up the great, great, great grandfather snail in my gloves, and walked back inside. No creature deserved to be left alone outside in a place like this. I almost laughed at the thought. Except me, of course.

Back up in the top room, I settled down to bed, the great, great, great grandfather snail atop my desk.

"Do you think it'll be him?" I asked, turning the tiny seed over in my hands. The snail somehow achieved a hopeful look.

"Well," I said as I turned out the light, "we'll see. We will see."


End file.
